January 17, 2018

Water attorney running for Congress in CD2

Another Democrat is seeking the party’s nomination for the 2nd Congressional District seat.

Xochitl Torres Small, a water attorney from Las Cruces, announced Wednesday that she is joining a shrinking field of Democrats.

“As the daughter of a teacher and a social worker in Las Cruces, I learned early the values of hard work and having your neighbor’s back – something that seems long forgotten in Washington today,” Torres Small said. “To solve our greatest problems, we need a new crop of leaders ready to bring New Mexicans of all backgrounds together to find common sense solutions. I’m running to expand opportunities for hardworking families and to strengthen our rural communities with better access to healthcare, broadband service and good-paying jobs.”

She also announced a number of endorsements, including Democratic state representatives in the Las Cruces area Doreen Gallegos, Rudy Martinez and Joanne Ferrary.

Before working for the Kemp Smith LLP law firm, Torres Small clerked for federal judge Robert C. Brack and worked as a field representative for U.S. Sen. Tom Udall.

Torres Small is married to state Rep. Nathan Small.

She joins Angel Pena, David Alcon and Madeleine Hildebrandt in seeking the Democratic nomination. Four Republicans are seeking that party’s nomination.

“After a great deal of reflection and discussions with friends, family, and supporters, I have decided to end my campaign for Congress,” Baake said.

According to Ballotpedia, Tony Martinez announced he was no longer running for the seat, and he has removed his campaign Facebook and Twitter accounts.

After Torres Small announced her candidacy, Ronald Fitzherbert announced he would drop out of the race and endorse her.

“With the announcement of candidacy by Xochitl Torres Small I can finally feel good about withdrawing from the race,” Fitzherbert said in a statement. “Xochitl is someone I trust fully to represent the people of New Mexico in a fair and equitable manner and I fully support and endorse Xochitl in her bid to be the Democratic candidate for US Congress from the New Mexico 2nd District.”

The congressional seat is open because incumbent Steve Pearce is running for governor.

Update: Added information about Ronald Fitzherbert leaving the race.

Correction: This piece originally referred to a Libertarian Party candidate running in the race. That candidate is running in the Albuquerque-area 1st Congressional District.

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